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 06 July 2008 14:55 BST

New species of great ape discovered

Thursday, 23 Aug 2007 16:45
The teeth found in Ethiopia
Researchers in Ethiopia have discovered a new species of great ape which lived about ten million years ago.

The discovery is being hailed as a significant step in the search to pinpoint when gorillas spilt from the human line.

Named Chororapithecus abyssinicus, the ape is said to be the earliest recognised primate that was directly related to the living African great apes – gorillas, chimpanzees and bonobos.

Writing in the journal Nature, the researchers behind the find argue the fossils of the new species show that humans and apes probably split much earlier than considered by previous studies.

These suggested that the human-ape split was eight million years ago, but the latest study puts the split at ten to 11 million years ago.

The fossils – consisting of nine teeth from the ape – were discovered at the south-eastern end of the Afar rift in Ethiopia, about 170km east of Addis Ababa.

This location is also about 190km south of the famous Middle Awash sites where the early human ancestor fossils were found.

To identify who the teeth belonged to, scientists used three dimensional analysis of the molar structure.

Commenting on the differences between the ancient ape and its modern-day counterparts, researchers Dr Gen Suwa said: "It's a subtle distinction, but we've compared it with everything we could think of.

"And it does show some telling signs of gorilla-like molar structure. If it's not a gorilla relative, then it's something very similar to what an early gorilla must have looked like."
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